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Rapeseed oil

(15 Posts)
janeainsworth Mon 22-Oct-12 17:28:52

I have used olive oil and butter exclusively for years - two things I wouldn't give up in the interests of economy.
But I've been given some rapeseed oil and when I googled it, it was proclaimed as the 'British Olive Oil' and said to be just as healthy as the real thing, bursting with mono-unsaturated fat.....
I like to buy British when I can[waves Union Jack] - but does anyone else use it and does it taste as nice as olive oil?

vampirequeen Mon 22-Oct-12 17:37:12

I use it. Doesn't taste of anything really.

Ana Mon 22-Oct-12 17:42:03

I use it for frying - used to deep-fry with it in the bad old days. I wouldn't think of it as a substitute for olive oil, though.

shysal Mon 22-Oct-12 17:42:24

I am using a bottle of rape seed oil at the moment, thought I would give it a try instead of the usual light olive oil. I must say I haven't noticed a difference in taste when used in cooking. It seems a little lighter in colour and contains less than half the saturated fat (6g per 100ml instead of 13g in the olive oil). As it is British and organic I feel it is the oil of preference for the future.
I hope you find it acceptable if you try it.

whenim64 Mon 22-Oct-12 17:48:25

Yes, I use it. It's better for more subtle tasting food as you can taste olive oil, which I do use as well. It's relatively expensive, but I pick a bottle up when it's on offer.

absentgrana Mon 22-Oct-12 17:55:05

Rapesed oil has a higher proportion of monounsaturated fat than olive oil. In recent years, producers have started treating rapeseed oil in the same way as olive oil i.e. extra virgin, virgin and nothing special. The nothing special is a good all-purpose oil that doesn't have a strong flavour that can quarrel with the flavours of ingredients. The better and more expensive types of rapesed oil do have a flavour and, just like olive oil, this varies depending on where the oil wad produced. It is well worth a try.

Grannylin Mon 22-Oct-12 18:24:33

Not sure about this but a friend advised me that olive oil is only more beneficial when not 'cooked' ie better as a salad dressing and rapeseed oil is better for cooking- definitely cheaper.

absentgrana Mon 22-Oct-12 18:28:04

Olive oil has quite a low smoke point so it's not the best oil for anything that needs to be cooked at a very high temperature. For other sorts of cooking, it's fine, but it tends to be expensive in the UK. In countries where it is produced – Spain, Italy, Greece, New Zealand – it's the standard oil in the pantry.

janeainsworth Mon 22-Oct-12 20:51:29

Thanks all for your comments.
I tried out the rapeseed oil tonight - salmon fillets drizzled with oil and lemon juice and seasoned with salt and pepper, covered with foil and baked in the oven for 20 minutes.
Served with a white wine sauce, Anna potatoes, steamed carrots and courgettes, and a nice glass of sauvignon blanc.
Yummy!
wine

merlotgran Mon 22-Oct-12 21:22:10

Great for roast potatoes grin

FlicketyB Mon 22-Oct-12 22:08:33

Prefer goose fat for roast potatoes but use rapeseed oil for everything else

merlotgran Mon 22-Oct-12 22:14:19

OK. It's potatoes at dawn....I've used both, Flickety and I reckon rapeseed oil makes crispier roasties. [licking lips emoticon]

FlicketyB Tue 23-Oct-12 11:08:06

Perhaps its local growing conditions, my potatos are home grown - and the goose fat is local! grin

feetlebaum Tue 23-Oct-12 11:16:37

You#ve stirred a memory... Sunday market in Aix-en-Provence, going round the farmers' stalls tasting their olive oil before selecting a litre to bring home...

What about Sunflower oil?

absentgrana Tue 23-Oct-12 11:58:36

Sunflower oil is very bland, as are safflower, corn, groundnut (peanut), soya and "vegetable". This makes them all good choices for general purpose cooking but no use where a flavoursome oil is required, such as in a salad dressing.